A Mahayana school of Indian Buddhism that does not assert the true existence of anything. One of the four Indian Buddhist tenet systems studied by all traditions of Tibetan Buddhism.

Tib: dbu-maSkt: madhyamaka

Mahamudra

mahamudra

Literally, "the great seal," a Mahayana meditation practice that focuses on the nature of the mind.

Tib: phyag-rgya chen-poSkt: mahamudra

Mahamudra, Essenz-

mahamudra, essence

See: essence mahamudra

Mahamudra, Mantra-

mahamudra, mantra

See: mantra mahamudra

Mahamudra, Pfad-

mahamudra, pathway

See: pathway mahamudra

Mahamudra, Sutra-

mahamudra, sutra

See: sutra mahamudra

Mahayana

Mahayana

Literally, a "Vast Vehicle of Mind" - levels or states of mind that, with a vast motivation of bodhichitta, employ vast methods for reach the vast goal of enlightenment. Some translators render the term as "Greater Vehicle."

Tib: theg-chenSkt: mahayana

Mahayana-Meister

Mahayana master

A spiritual mentor in whose presence disciples take bodhisattva vows. In a broader sense, a spiritual mentor whose teachings on compassion and bodhichitta lead disciples to develop aspiring and engaged bodhichittas, and then to take bodhisattva vows.

Mahayoga

mahayoga

Within the Nyingma classification scheme of nine vehicles of mind, the class of tantra leading to dzogchen practice but with the main emphasis and detail on generation stage practice.

Tib: ma-ha yo-ga

Makel, flüchtiger

stain, fleeting

See: fleeting stain

Mandala

mandala

In general, a round symbol used to represent a meaning. Most often used to represent a world system.

Tib: dkyil- 'khorSkt: mandala

Mandala, äußeres

mandala, outer

See: outer mandala

Mandala, dreidimensionales

mandala, three-dimensional

See: three-dimensional mandala

Mandala, inneres

mandala, inner

See: inner mandala

Mandala, Körper-

mandala, body

See: body mandala

Mandala, Stoff-

mandala, cloth

See: cloth mandala

Mandala, unterstützendes

mandala, supporting

See: supporting mandala

Mandala, unterstützes

mandala, supported

See: supported mandala

Mandala aus gestreutem Sand

mandala, powdered sand

See: powdered sand mandala

Mandala aus gestreutem Sand

powdered sand mandala

A two-dimensional representation, made of powdered colored minerals, which is like an architectural blueprint of the three-dimensional palace, environment, and Buddha-figures of a symbolic world system, and used for conferring a tantric empowerment.

Tib: rdul-phran-gyi dkyil-'khor

Mandala der Rede

mandala, speech

See: speech mandala

manifeste Wahrnehmung

manifest cognition

A cognition in which the consciousness gives rise to a mental hologram of a cognitive object and, in which, the cognitive object appears, through that hologram, both to the person and to the consciousness of the manifest cognition. Both the person and the manifest consciousness cognitively take it _ both cognize or "know" it.
See also: subliminal cognition.

Tib: shes-pa mngon-gyur-ba

Mantra

mantra

Sets of syllables and, often, additional Sanskrit words and phrases, all of which represent enlightening speech and which, when repeated, protect the mind from destructive states. While repeating the mantras of a Buddha-figure, one imagines having the abilities to communicate perfectly to everyone the complete means for eliminating suffering and reaching enlightenment. Mantras shape the breath, and consequently the subtle energy-winds, enabling one to bring the winds under control for use in meditation practice.

Tib: sngagsSkt: mantra

Mantra-Ansammlung, Mantra-Sammlung

mantra-gathering

A tantric ritual for giving disciples confidence in the accuracy of a mantra, in which the vowels and consonants of the Sanskrit alphabet are written with colored powder in a grid on the surface of a metal mirror and the tantric master reads out, one by one, the grid location of the consonant and vowel for each syllable of the main mantra. After each specification of the consonant and vowel of a syllable, an assistant takes some colored powder from the mirror and uses it to write the syllable on the surface of another metal mirror.

Tib: sngags-btus

Mantra-Mahamudra

mantra mahamudra

Meditations on the nature of the mind with regard to the subtlest mind, clear light.

Tib: sngags-kyi phyag-chen

Meditation

meditation

The repeated practice of generating and focusing on a beneficial state of mind in order to build it up as a habit.

Tib: sgomSkt: bhavana

Meditation, klar erkennende

meditation, discerning

See: discerning meditation

Meditation, stabilisierende oder verankernde

meditation, stabilizing

See: stabilizing meditation

Meditationstrainer

meditation trainer

A teacher who instructs one in the mechanics of meditation, such as the correct posture.

meditative Ausgewogenheit

meditative equipoise

See: total absorption

Mengenlehre

set theory

Set theory has to do with the logical pervasions between two or more sets -- mutually exclusive, totally congruent, overlapping, etc. A set is a collection or a group of many items, like the set of all nonstatic phenomena.

Tib: bsdus-grvaSkt: dura

Mentor, spiritueller

mentor, spiritual

See: spiritual mentor

Merkmal, unterscheidendes

feature, distinguishing

See: feature, distinguishing

Merkmalsbesitzer

property-possessor

A member of the set of phenomena possessing a certain property, such as voidness as its actual nature.

Tib: chos-can

metaphysische Entitäten

metaphysical entities

In the Sautrantika and Chittamatra tenet systems, those phenomena, the existence of which is established by their being merely imputed by conceptual cognition and which are superficial (relative, conventional) true phenomena. According to Sautrantika, they include all static phenomena; according to Chittamatra, they include all static phenomena other than voidnesses, true stoppings, and nirvanas. (1) In the Gelug system, they are the appearing objects of only conceptual cognitions, although they are not the actual cognitive appearances in those cognitions. They may be validly cognized not only by valid conceptual cognition, but also implicitly by valid nonconceptual cognition. (2) In the non-Gelug systems, they can only be validly cognized by valid conceptual cognition. Also translated as "generally characterized phenomena."

Tib: spyi-mtshanSkt: samanyalakshana

Methode der Realisierung

method of actualization

See: sadhana

metrische Verse

metered verses

Two-to-six-lined verses composed by Buddha. One of the twelve scriptural categories.

Voidnesses that are validly cognized conceptually. They are "denumerable" in the sense that they can be counted among what appears to minds validly cognizing phenomena through mentally labeling them with words and concepts.

Tib: rnam-grangs-pa'I don-dam

Möchtegern-Gott

would-be divine

Also called: anti-gods

Tib: lha ma-yinSkt: asura

Moment

moment

The smallest unit of time.

Tib: skad-cigSkt: kshana

Monade

monad

An undifferentiated, partless whole, either the size of an atom or the size of the universe, asserted by non-Buddhist schools of Indian philosophy as descriptive of the atman, the "soul" of a person.

Tib: gcig

monastischer Sangha / Sangha der Mönche

monastic sangha

See: Sangha

Mönchsgemeinschaft

monastic community

See: Sangha

moralische Selbstwürde

moral self-dignity

As defined by Asanga, the sense to refrain from negative behavior because of caring how one's actions reflect on oneself.

Tib: ngo-tsha shes-paSkt: hri

moralische Selbstwürde, kein Gefühl von

no sense of moral self-dignity

See: no moral self-dignity

Tib: ngo-tsha med-pa

Motivation

motivating aim

Synonymous with intention. See: intention.

Tib: kun-slong

Motivation

motivation

When used in Western languages, a state of mind that entails two mental factors (subsidiary awarenesses): a motivating aim and a motivating emotion. A motivating aim is the mental factor of an intention – the intention to reach a certain goal for a certain purpose. A motivating emotion is the mental factor of the positive or negative emotion, such as love and compassion, or jealousy and greed, which accompanies the intention and moves one to attain that goal.

Motivation, ursächliche

motivating aim, causal

See: causal motivating aim

motivierender geistiger Rahmen

motivating mental framework

A state of mind that accompanies a karmic urge or impulse and which is a cluster of three mental factors (subsidiary awarenesses): distinguishing an object on which to focus the action, the motivating aim of what one intends to do with or to that object, and a motivating emotion or attitude.

Tib: bsam-pa

mühelos

unlabored

A state of mind, such as bodhichitta, generated instantly without needing to work oneself up to it, with deliberate effort, through a series of steps, each of which entails a line of reasoning.

Tib: rtsol-med

müheloses Bodhichitta

unlabored bodhichitta

A bodhichitta aim that arises automatically and effortlessly, without need to build up to it through steps or by relying on lines of reasoning.

Tib: rtsol-med byang-sems

mündliche Übertragung

oral transmission

A ceremony during which a spiritual teacher reads aloud or recites from memory, without any mistakes, a Buddhist text or mantra to disciples who listen attentively. The teacher needs to have heard, himself or herself, the words of the text or mantra recited faultlessly by his or her own teacher, who likewise heard it in this manner in an unbroken lineage tracing back to Buddha or to the author of the text. The ceremony insures the accurate transmission of the words, although neither the teacher reciting them nor the disciple hearing them need to understand their meaning.

Tib: lung

Musiker, himmlische

musician, heavenly

See: those who sustain themselves on fragrances

Mutter

mother-awareness

The recognition of all beings as having at some time been one's mother. The first of the seven-part cause and effect quintessence teaching for developing bodhichitta.